Both the front door to the house and the door to the garage hadn't been closing well. When you went to swing the door shut, it would hang / stick when the lock striker hit the strike plate. If you swung the door hard enough, it would latch, but, that didn't seem like a good long term solution.
I guess I must have read a hint somewhere along the way, although I can't remember when or where. I don't think I am creative enough to have devised this solution on my own.
Anyway, the solution was quite simple.
I simply took a regular #2 pencil, and rubbed the point of the pencil all over the striker - think "colored in" all of the metal surfaces. I believe the rubbing accomplished two things:
- The rubbing removed any corrosion from the surface of the striker, reducing the friction between the striker and the lock body and between the striker and the strike plate
- The graphite in the pencil acts as a lubricant
Regardless of the hows and whys, the doors latch easily and smoothly now.
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Posted by David at January 17, 2007 11:42 AM